The Red Detachment of Women (1961 film)

The Red Detachment of Women () is a 1961 Chinese war film by Xie Jin based on a script by Liang Xin. It is set in the 1930s and involves two peasant women who go into warfare.Marchetti, Gina. "Two Stage Sisters: The Blossoming of a Revolutionary Aesthetic" (). Jump Cut. March 1989. No. 34. pp. 95–106. The cast includes Zhu Xijuan, Wang Xingang, Xiang Mei, Jin Naihua, Chen Qiang, and Niu Ben.

The Red Detachment of Women became famous after winning the PRC's best script, best director, and best actress awards in November 1961.Gucheng Li A Glossary of Political Terms of the People's Republic of China 9622016154 1995 Hong se niang zi jun 红色娘子军 (The Red Detachment of Women) The Red Detachment of Women was a film that became famous after winning an award. ... The film characters of Qiong Hua, Hong Changqing, and Nan Batian became quite well-known. In November 1961, the film won the best script, best director, and best actress awards. (Lexicon of PRC History, pp. 413–414) The film characters of Qiong Hua, Hong Changqing, and Nan Batian became quite well-known and, following the success of the Red Detachment of Women ballet in 1964, by the end of 1966 was elevated to one of the eight "revolutionary model theatrical works" (geming yangbanxi, or yangbanxi for short), which formed the official canon. A film of the ballet was released in 1970.

Plot In September 1930, the Chinese Communist Party (CCP) set up a division in Hainan Island, which contained a company of female soldiers called the Red Detachment of Women. The CCP representative, Hong Changqing disguises as an oversea businessman to come across Nan Batian. He claims that he is back from abroad with large fortunes. Attempting to expand his armed forces with Changqing's help, Nan Batian holds a feast for Changqing. During Changqing's visit to Batian, he takes notice of a maidservant of Batian who suffers from Batian's torture. He makes a simple excuse to take that maidservant with him in order to free her from the oppression. At the time of their parting, Changqing knows her name is Wu Qionghua and she intends to be a soldier to fight against the feudal landlord. Guiding by Hong Changqing, Qionghua makes her way to the encampment with another young woman, Fu Honglian, who refuses her life as a widow. They are welcomed by the Red Detachment of Women because of their poor backgrounds.

In a following reconnaissance mission, Qionghua occasionally sees Nan Batian and she fires at him despite the military discipline. Batian is wounded while Qionghua's mission is failed. The company commander trained her in serious criticism and Hong Changqing reminds her of her position as a revolutionary fighter. Afterward in another mission, Hong Changqing and Wu Qionghua disguise as a businessman and his maidservant the same as before to enter Nan Batian's fort as spies. In the battle of Batian's fort, the Red Army successfully occupies the fort with help from inside and captures Nan Batian alive. However, the crafty Nan Batian escapes through a tunnel. In the following peasant movements, Qionghua takes an active part and she applies to join the Chinese Communist Party.

The escaping Nan Batian reports the situation to the government and the KMT assigns a brigade to attack the Red Army in Hainan Island. The Red Army retreats to the mountains. In a battle to cover the retreat, Hong Changqing is wounded and he is captured alive. He refuses to surrender and accepts his death bravely. Having witnessed Changqing's death, Qionghua returns to the encampment and becomes the successive CCP representative. She organizes an operation to destroy Nan Batian's forces after the KMT brigade leaves Hainan Island. They successfully occupy Batian's fort again and sentence the death of Nan Batian. Under Wu Qionghua's leadership, the Red Detachment of Women is marching to a bright future.

Filmmakers

Director

Xie Jin （谢晋）（1923.11.21-2008.10.18） Evaluation:“Xie Jin is the national soul of Chinese films. He pays attention to the destiny of the nation. His films represent the changes of different times, which can let the audience see the real living conditions of people at that time and the significance of the times. His artistic pursuit of developing synchronously with the times and seeking new changes is admirable. Always keep pace with the times, is the biggest characteristic of Xie Jin. In his works, there is a strong sense of social responsibility and patriotic national consciousness, and with the combination of film narrative methods close to the public, reached the peak of political and ethical melodrama, and shaped a series of successful female images.”(By Shuqin Huang, Quan Yuan, Hong yin)

Writer

Liang Xin (梁信) （1926.3.2－2017.1.28） Evaluation: Liang Xin's film literary creation can be divided into two periods. His early plays reflect several important historical periods of the people's revolutionary war. The later works have various themes and extensive contents, he combines history with people, and shows the essential characteristics of the times through the emotional actions of characters in various historical periods. Like other writers, Liang Xin defended and advocated the nationalization of film. His creation process is a careful, careful and earnest process of exploring the road of film nationalization. He attaches great importance to the expression of national consciousness and national spirit, and is not limited to the description of love. In his plays, he describes the behavior of the characters and pays attention to the nationalization.

Main Charactors

Wu Qionghua Actress: Zhu Xijuan

Wu Qionghua is a maidservant belongs to a feudal landlord, Nan Batian. She is a tenacious, pungent, brave youth whose father was skinned by Nan Batian. She has been lived in hatred to the landlord for a long time and never yields even in water prison after being whipped. With Hong Changqing's help, she is able to join the Red Detachment of Women, where she grows from an ordinary soldier to a proletarian pioneer fighter.

Evaluation of Xijuan Zhu: After a lot of hard work, Zhu Xijuan finally completed the transformation from a "student" to a "detachment of women". In the film, Zhu uses her " burning eyes" and strong body language to make the rebellious and resolute personality of Wu Qionghua's perfectly. "At that time, all the other actors in the film were already famous, but I was still a nobody," Zhu recalled. Movies at that time were full of dramatic performances. I had no idea what I wanted to do. All I knew was that I had to fulfill the tasks assigned by the Party and play my role well. When take play, director Xie always charge us not to see lens, do not care about whether beautiful or not, but just follow the plots and play your part well.” (By Yu Xin)

Hong Changqing Actor: Wang Xingang

Hong Changqing is the young Party representative of the women detachment. He is a firm, strong character who is loyal and enthusiastic towards the Communist Party. Because of the hardship his father suffered, Changqing struggled in the society at a young age and gained much experience, which made him mature. In the conversation with Wu Qionghua, he uses his self-experience to persuade her and helps her grow.

Nan Batian Actor: Chen Qiang

Nan Batian is one of the largest feudal landlords in Hainan Island. He is a cruel, fierce, crafty, and arbitrary character who believes himself of great talent. He has relationships with both government and local bandits. He also recruits militias and sets up checkpoints in the area he controls. Nan Batian is the archenemy of the Hainan Red Army.

Fu Honglian Actress: Xiang Mei

Fu Honglian is also an honest, kind young woman who suffers feudal oppression. She was sold as a child bride at the age of 10. Her husband had already died, and she has been accompanied a "wooden husband" for ten years. Such mental torture pushes her to join the red army when Wu Qionghua comes to her house on a rainy night. They join the Red Detachment of Women together and fight side by side in the following battles.

Majordomo Actor: Yang Mengchang

The majordomo of Nan Batian is a scholar image with a poker face. He is very careful and suspicious. He always does his best to fulfill his master's will. He also gives Nan Batian many ideas when Batian is dealing with tricky problems. When his advice is obstinately rejected by Nan Batian, he sighs for not having a wise master.

Staff Source: +Camera OperatorShen XilinSound DesignerGong ZhengmingArt DirectorZhang HanchenEditorWei ChunbaoExecutive Line ProducersDing LiAssistant to DirectorWang JieOriginal MusicHuang ZhunMilitary ConsultantMa BaishanPyrotechnic SupervisorChen YonggengMake-up ArtistsWang Tiebin

Songs

Song of the Red Detachment of Women

Song of the Red Detachment of Women Timecode in the film: 0:40-2:18 and 1:50:10-1:50:45

Red Flags Fly on Mt Wuzhi

Red Flags Fly on Mt Wuzhi Timecode in the film: 36:23-38:10

Wu Qionghua’s Historical Archetype

The archetype of Wu Qionghua in the movie is not a single character, but an artistic image shaped by synthesizing the experiences and character traits of a number of real historical figures. The movie integrates the real deeds of Feng Zengmin. Her and Wu Qionghua's life trajectories highly overlap: born in poverty, oppressed by the landlord, grew up to be the leader of the Maiden Scouts after joining the revolution, and captured the bullies alive. In addition, the movie takes the name of Pang Qionghua. As the first commander of the “Women's Army Special Services Company”, Wu Qionghua's name is obviously borrowed from her. In addition, the movie also synthesizes the experiences of other unnamed female fighters. The screenwriter, Liang Xin, mentions that Wu Qionghua's portrayal also incorporates the experiences of several oppressed women he met in the Northeast, such as a maid who escaped the landlord's mistreatment several times and a female warrior who survived being buried alive. These characters provide a realistic basis for Wu Qionghua's rebellious character and motivation for revenge.张均."吴琼花原型考释." 学术研究 .08(2020):143-151. doi:CNKI:SUN:XSYJ.0.2020-08-020.

Production History

There was a strong desire to produce works of dance and film within the years before and after the 1961 film, with a particular interest in these artistic practices as performed by women. The film was then developed to promote the Chinese Communist Party (CCP), its ideology and the strength of women during the Chinese Civil War. There was a particular interest in film during and after the cultural revolution due to its popularity as a medium. The CCP used the arts, including dance and film, to promote these ideas around socialism both at home and around the world

By the mid-1960s, the individual authors associated with The Red Detachment of Women began to lose prominence, replaced by a new model of collective authorship aligned with Cultural Revolution ideals. This shift emphasized mass participation, though it coincided with increasing involvement from state figures like Jiang Qing. The ballet’s development became politically charged, with multiple parties—including Prime Minister Zhou Enlai, the Beijing Ballet School, and the China Peking Opera Academy—contributing to its formation. While Jiang Qing has sometimes been credited with the work’s creation, research suggests her influence became significant only later in the process.